cliff is not focusing attention. the report that mitch mcconnell laughed yesterday when timothy geithner presented the white house position, this is the mitch mcconnell who said we're going to -- my main goal is to defeat the president, not give him a second term. >> how is that working? >> senator mcconnell, second term is here, things have changed, and the obama -- the last term where he was reaching out offering to negotiate from the middle, is gone. you know, he's going to put out there what he wants because he won and there is not a chance of defeating him now. at least in an election. and i don't think on this issue. on the issue of middle class tax cuts republicans want to go forward saying we raised taxes on the middle class. >> but chris, doesn't the white house have to be a little more specific about what's in that $400 billion of medicare cuts? i mean they're trying to smoke out what the republicans are willing to go for, but each side is suspicious, understandably, they will get hammered publicly. >> that